Why a strategy to fight ISIS in Syria will take time

By Mark Hertling

updated 9:59 AM EDT, Mon September 1, 2014

A wounded child walks at a makeshift hospital in the rebel-held town of Douma after being injured in a reported airstrike by government forces on Tuesday, December 23. Douma, located near Damascus, has been under government siege for more than a year, with residents facing dwindling food and medical supplies.The United Nations estimates nearly 200,000 people have been killed in Syria since an uprising in March 2011 spiraled into civil war.

A Christmas tree and a crèche made out of rubble are set up on a square in the, predominantly Christian, government-held Hamidiyeh neighborhood of Homs on Monday, December 22.

Syrian children await medical treatment at a makeshift clinic in the besieged rebel town of Douma, on Sunday, December 21, near Damascus.

A Syrian rebel fighter keeps an eye on government troops in Aleppo, Syria, on Wednesday, December 17.

A man drives his motorcycle through a puddle in Aleppo on Wednesday, November 26.

A Syrian opposition fighter fires at Bashar al-Assad Regime forces in the Handarat district of Aleppo on Thursday, November 20.

Syrian boys play in the ruins of a destroyed building in Aleppo on Tuesday, November 18.

A wounded man is treated at a makeshift hospital in Damascus, Syria, following a reported air strike by government forces on Tuesday, November 11.

Members of the Syrian Civil Defense carry an injured man after an alleged air strike in Aleppo on November 11.

A member of the Syrian Civil Defense walks through a cloud of dust after an alleged air strike by government forces in Aleppo on November 11.

A father cries over his son at a physical therapy center in Eastern al-Ghouta outside Damascus on Thursday, November 6. The boy had his leg tendons cut after he was injured in an airstrike four months before.

A blindfolded man suspected of passing military information to the Syrian government waits to be interrogated by Free Syrian Army fighters Monday, October 6, in Aleppo.

Medics at a field hospital in Douma, Syria, attend to a man who was injured in what activists said were two airstrikes carried out by forces loyal to Syrian President Bashar al-Assad on Saturday, September 20.

Free Syrian Army fighters rest inside a damaged room in Aleppo on Tuesday, September 16, during what activists said were clashes with forces loyal to al-Assad.

Syrian government forces walk down a street in Halfaya, Syria, after taking the city from rebel forces on Friday, September 12.

Al-Qaeda-linked rebels from Syria gather around vehicles carrying U.N. peacekeepers from Fiji before releasing them Thursday, September 11, in the Golan Heights. The 45 peacekeepers were captured in the Golan Heights after rebels seized control of a border crossing between Syria and the Israeli-occupied territory.

Syrian opposition fighters take position behind sandbags in Aleppo on Thursday, September 11.

Syrians fleeing the violence stand next to their belongings as they attempt to cross into Turkey on Sunday, September 7.

A boy looks at bodies lying outside a hospital after a barrel-bomb attack in Aleppo on Friday, September 5.

A U.N. convoy moves in the buffer zone near the Golan Heights as they are escorted by Syrian rebel fighters near the Syrian village of Jubata Al Khashab on Tuesday, September 2.

Residents of Aleppo remove a body from debris on Friday, August 29, after what activists claim was shelling by forces loyal to al-Assad.

Druze men watch from the Golan Heights side of the Quneitra border with Syria as smoke rises during fighting between rebels and forces loyal to al-Assad on Wednesday, August 27.

This image was taken during a government guided tour in Mleiha, Syria, one day after Syrian government forces retook the town after a months-long battle with rebels, according to a military source and state television on Friday, August 15.

Residents inspect the rubble of destroyed buildings in Aleppo after Syrian regime helicopters allegedly dropped barrel bombs there on Wednesday, August 13.

Smoke trails over Aleppo following barrel bombs that were allegedly dropped by the Syrian regime on an opposition-controlled area on Monday, August 11.

Photographs of victims of the Bashar al-Assad regime are displayed as a Syrian Army defector known as "Caesar," center, appears in disguise to speak before the House Foreign Affairs Committee in Washington. The briefing on Thursday, July 31, was called "Assad's Killing Machine Exposed: Implications for U.S. Policy." Caesar was apparently a witness to al-Assad's brutality and has smuggled more than 50,000 photographs depicting the torture and execution of more than 10,000 dissidents.

Syrian rebel fighters take up positions behind sandbags in Aleppo on Wednesday, July 30.

People carry an injured man away from the site of an airstrike, reportedly carried out by Syrian government forces, in Aleppo on Sunday, July 27.

Rebel fighters execute two men Friday, July 25, in Binnish, Syria. The men reportedly were charged by an Islamic religious court with detonating several car bombs.

A rebel fighter stands on a dust-covered street in Aleppo on Monday, July 21.

A man clears debris at the site of an alleged barrel-bomb attack in Aleppo on Tuesday, July 15.

A woman walks amid debris after an airstrike by government forces July 15 in Aleppo.

People walk on a dust-filled street after a reported barrel-bomb attack in Aleppo on Monday, July 7.

A rescue worker pulls a girl from rubble in Aleppo on June 1 after reported bombing by government forces.

A giant poster of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad is seen in Damascus, Syria, on Saturday, May 31, as the capital prepares for presidential elections.

Portraits of al-Assad dominate the cityscape in central Damascus on Tuesday, May 27. Al-Assad is firmly in power three years into the civil war, while the opposition remains weak and fragmented and extremists grow in numbers and influence.

The father of a 3-month-old girl weeps Monday, May 26, after she was pulled from rubble following a barrel-bomb strike in Aleppo.

A woman stands in a heavily damaged building in Aleppo on May 26.

An injured man lies in a hospital bed after alleged airstrikes by government forces in Aleppo on Sunday, May 18.

Buildings in Homs, Syria, lie in ruins Saturday, May 10, days after an evacuation truce went into effect. Thousands of displaced residents returned to the city.

Rescuers carry a man wounded by a mine in the Bustan al-Diwan neighborhood of Homs on May 10.

A Syrian woman carries a suitcase along a street in the Juret al-Shayah district of Homs on May 10.

Residents carry their belongings in the al-Hamidieh neighborhood of Homs on May 10.

A woman injured when a mine went off is carried in Homs on May 10.

Residents return to damaged dwellings in Homs on May 10.

Debris lies on a deserted street in Homs on Thursday, May 8.

A mosque is seen through shattered glass in Homs, where an evacuation truce went into effect on Wednesday, May 7.

A wounded man is treated at a makeshift hospital in Aleppo on Sunday, May 4.

Debris rises in what Free Syrian Army fighters said was an operation to strike a checkpoint and remove government forces in Maarat al-Numan, Syria, on Monday, May 5.

A man helps a woman through debris after reported airstrikes by government forces on Thursday, May 1, in the Halak neighborhood of Aleppo.

Syrians gather at the site of reported airstrikes in Aleppo on May 1. According to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, at least 33 civilians were killed in the attack.

A woman runs after two barrel bombs were thrown, reportedly by forces loyal to Syrian President Bashar al-Assad in Aleppo on May 1.

A boy runs in Aleppo on Sunday, April 27, after what activists said were explosive barrels thrown by forces loyal to al-Assad.

Security and emergency medical personnel work at the site of a car bomb explosion Monday, April 14, in the Ekremah neighborhood of Homs.

In this photo released by the state-run SANA news agency, Syrian forces take positions during clashes with rebels near the town of Rankous, Syria, on Sunday, April 13.

Flames engulf a vehicle following a car bomb Wednesday, April 9, in the Karm al-Loz neighborhood of Homs.

A man carries a child who was found in the rubble of an Aleppo building after it was reportedly bombed by government forces on Monday, March 18.

An elderly man and a child walk among debris in a residential block of Aleppo on March 18.

A woman with blood on her face carries a child following a reported airstrike by government forces Saturday, March 15, in Aleppo.

People attempt to comfort a man in Aleppo after a reported airstrike by government forces on Sunday, March 9.

Buildings in Homs lay in ruins on March 9.

Syrian forces fire a cannon and a heavy machine gun loaded on a truck as they fight rebels in the Syrian town of Zara on Saturday, March 8.

A handout photo released by SANA shows Syrian President Bashar al-Assad speaking March 8 during a meeting in Damascus to mark the 51st anniversary of the 1963 revolution, when Baath Party supporters in the Syrian army seized power. Al-Assad said the country will go on with reconciliation efforts along with its fight against terrorism.

Syrians inspect the rubble of destroyed buildings in Aleppo following a reported airstrike by Syrian government forces on Friday, March 7.

People dig through the rubble of a building in Damascus that was allegedly hit by government airstrikes on Thursday, February 27.

A boy walks ahead of men carrying the body of his mother in Aleppo on Saturday, February 22. According to activists, the woman was killed when explosive barrels were thrown by forces loyal to al-Assad.

A man holds a baby who survived what activists say was an airstrike by al-Assad loyalists Friday, February 14, in Aleppo.

In this photo provided by the anti-government activist group Aleppo Media Center, Syrian men help survivors out of a building in Aleppo after it was bombed, allegedly by a Syrian regime warplane on Saturday, February 8.

Syrians gather at a site hit by barrel bombs, allegedly dropped by a regime helicopter on the opposition-controlled Mesekin Hananu district of Aleppo on February 8.

In this handout photo released by the state-run SANA news agency on February 8, civilians wave national flags in Damascus as they take part in a rally in support of President al-Assad.

A man stands next to debris in the road following a reported airstrike by Syrian government forces in Aleppo on February 8.

Medical personnel look for survivors after a reported airstrike in Aleppo on Saturday, February 1.

Syrians carry a dead body following an airstrike on February 1.

A man walks amid debris and dust on January 31.

An injured man is covered in dust after an airstrike on January 29.

A man tries to fix electrical wires in Aleppo on January 27.

Rebels and civilians check out a crater that activists say resulted from a Syrian government airstrike on an Aleppo bus station on Tuesday, January 21.

Men rush to a site that Syrian government forces reportedly hit in Aleppo on January 21.

Buildings lie in ruins in Aleppo on Sunday, January 19, after reported air raids by Syrian government planes.

A child collects items from a garbage pile in Douma, northeast of the capital, on Saturday, January 18.

A piece of exploded mortar lies in a street in Daraya, a Syrian city southwest of Damascus, on Friday, January 17.

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STORY HIGHLIGHTS

Americans see barbarity perpetuated by ISIS and want it stopped as soon as possible

He says the Syria situation is particularly complex, given the ongoing civil war

Hertling: Many agencies, constituencies need to be heard from in the planning

Editor's note: Retired Lt. Gen. Mark Hertling, former commander of U.S. Army Europe, served in the Army for more than 37 years and spent more than three years in Iraq. He was serving as the director for war plans on the Joint Staff on September 11 and has extensive experience in strategy development and implementation. He is a CNN military analyst. The opinions expressed in this commentary are solely those of the author.

(CNN) -- When asked to describe "strategy," every military leader who has attained the rank of colonel will probably begin the description with an explanation of ends, ways and means.

"Ends" define the objectives or the outcomes desired, in effect, the goals the nation aspires to achieve. "Means" are the various resources available to the political (or military) leader, and "ways" are how that leader applies the resources to achieve the ends. It is a simple model taught at all our nation's war colleges (and in most higher-level military and political institutions around the world).

But determining the way in which the various means of national power are applied requires statecraft and coordination, an integrated comparison of potential options and an analysis of expected and unexpected outcomes, and a determination of the risks which face the nation in both the short and the long term.

Although it is always important to act quickly in developing strategies which address challenges to the nation's security, the informed strategist also knows he has to weigh options from those who represent all the elements of power -- diplomacy, information, economics, military -- before he "decides to decide," that is, makes a decision in the right time to affect the desired outcome.

When Americans see the kind of barbarity perpetuated by those in the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria, we want it stopped. And we want it stopped now, before these extremists kill more innocents in increasingly horrific ways or bring jihad to our shores to carry out more attacks.

W.H. defends Obama's 'no strategy' line

Does Obama have a strategy for ISIS?

What should US strategy be against isis?

Analyst: Political moves in Iraq

Many believe that air power -- applied unrelentingly and precisely -- will destroy or defeat the scourge which ISIS represents. So many want that, in Syria, right now.

Precision strikes are certainly a meansto effect the strategic ends. We have seen air power -- when supporting Iraqi security forces and Peshmerga fighters -- have a significant effect as part of the strategy to protect Americans in Irbil and Baghdad, relieve humanitarian crisis related to Yazidis and now Turkmen citizens, and influence the Iraqi Parliament to revamp its leadership.

But there were a lot of plans and preparation that went along with those effective airstrikes.

With Iraq, our national security team took into consideration advice from State, Department of Defense and Intelligence Agency analysts, ambassadors, regional military commanders and advisers on the ground and the regional political, social and cultural processes.

In Syria, it will be much more difficult. Consider the additional complexities involved: the ongoing Syrian civil war involving a government we don't support; a veritable "Star Wars" bar scene of anti-government groups that change hands almost on a daily basis; an unfamiliar territory, culture, religion, linguistics; an international community that wants action, and which will probably be affected by returning jihadists but may not be willing to join a coalition to counter the same; various moderate Islamists who are slow to condemn those in this extremist group; and an enemy that is integrated into the population within the borders of a failed state. All of these affect the development of short- and long-term strategy for Syria and for the region.

The military supports national strategy by developing various courses of action for our forces, all of which affect strategy development and the accomplishment of the national objectives.

Under the Goldwater-Nichols Act, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff provides various options to the President and then provides an analysis on their probability of success in contributing to the desired outcomes. But those options -- like the use of air power in executing strikes -- do not stand alone.

A few years ago, as a war planner, I contributed to strategies developed for countering terrorist groups. The strategy for countering ISIS in Syria is significantly more difficult and is probably still evolving because there are many more factors to consider.

We should want that strategy to be better than those we've had in the past. Unfortunately, the formulation of that strategy will require more time and more coordination with more agencies to achieve the right ends.